wut...wuzzat? wut time...time is it? There is a babbling, snuffling sound from the corner of the room, then a chewing noise. Something falls to the floor. Ohnotheaschen! Nasima sits bolt upright and is met with a scene of utter destruction; every appliance, electronic device, binder, drawer, shelf bracket...every thing in the room that can suffer a mechanical or electronic failure, that can break in some way...is broken. The aschen is sitting on her desk, surrounded by empty bags of coffee beans, visibly vibrating.

Nasima's jaw drops and she looks on in stunned silence for a moment. The aschen finishes its bag of beans and reaches for another. "AIR GIRL AWAKE NOW IS GOOD I HAVE COFFEE YES SO GOOD IT IS COFFEE OH YES I BREAK STONE AND KEEP SAFE BUT GET BORD SO I DANCE IS FUN WOULD YOU DANCE LET'S DANCE!!!!"

"w-where did you get coffee?! You're not supposed to have that! What did you do? Who gave you that?! Zephyrs and zones, Vai is gonna FREAK! Oh no..." She clutches her temples as the little creature jabbers and cavorts around.

"You're right about that. I thought she was a demon or something at first trying to trick me. But..."At this point, the three at seated at the table, Vai has a pair of sandwiches. She takes a bite from one of them, chews and swallows before continuing."Why would Lumos choose me? I'm sure there's others who are way stronger than me in here."

"It's not just about strength. It's about potential. They don't tend to see things in a linear fashion. Also, their candidate pool is smaller than you think since anyone with less than an elven lifespan is too short-lived to bother with. And then they need someone who for some reason has an ability to naturally attune to them for whatever reason. I mean, electricity is pretty glowy. Maybe that counts. Don't ask me why I'm a good choice for Time. The argument gets circular really fast. It comes down to the time demon and the Hunter DNA, and that's about as close as I can come to explaining it. That's why it gets circular because the other me was chosen too even without those things because my having them gave her some kind of resonance...well, all of the other me-s....It gives me a headache just trying to explain. The point is that in some way, shape, or form you have something that already tied you to your patron."

Ephebe looked at the vial in her hand. She looked a little lost. "Oh, right. The anti-nausea serum than Professor Yrrum made for me....well, here's hoping it helps," she said, taking a dose before reaching for a large pan of enchiladas.

"Wha-?" Keme bursts through the door, looks around, and then laughs. "Geez, you are such a spaz, princess. When I heard the screaming I thought something was actually wrong. I ran all the way here from the student lounge. Just get someone to cast some mendings and you'll be fine. Whatever. Now that you're awake I'm gonna go get some food," he said, waving dismissively.

"And don't think I'm doing this because I want to. Between my stupid patron and the cranky dragon lady I don't have any choice. I can't wait for this to be settled so I don't have to bother with some airhead princess."

"Alright, well, I guess I won't worry too much. She said that she could help me help Nasima somehow..."Vai takes another bite, chews and swallows."Can I... talk to her? Telepathically or something? How do you two talk to your patrons?"

"Alright, well, I guess I won't worry too much. She said that she could help me help Nasima somehow..."Vai takes another bite, chews and swallows."Can I... talk to her? Telepathically or something? How do you two talk to your patrons?"

"Well, your patron may be more the empathic type. In your case, I'd find a spot with a lot of light and see if you can get the message across. All of the patrons work a little differently, but there's usually some special spot that you can go to...Oh, and you'll be able to teleport anywhere without error now. But you can't use that power and take people with you. And by anywhere, I do mean anywhere."

"Hmph. She totally needs to learn to read the mood better. It's not cool to flirt with a guy when he's on a date with someone else."

"She's just teasing me. I think she started to make me feel better about always eating alone there, but I'm not sure."

It is this moment that Saffire decides to fly around and sniff at the crystal beetle wrapped around Michael's arm, making it poke out a leg and push the small drake away.

"It's not metal, Saffire, so don't try eating it. This is... well, I don't have a name for it yet. It injects a calm emotion potion into me when I start getting angry. Turns out some evil guy put a 'seed' of something in my mind. It can make anger and frustration multiply into... murderous rage. Professor Sunwake is getting people ready to try and remove it, Kitty."

"Professor Relkav was anger, not frustration. I got the impression that they haven't had to do something like this before so, yeah, they'll try. It's a bunch of powerful psychic's though, if that makes you feel better.

Vai looks evenly at Ephebe."Y.. you mean I could go back to my village?"Vai seems deep in thought for a couple moments before shaking her head."No, they aren't my family anymore. They lost that privilege. My family is here now."

Vai looks evenly at Ephebe."Y.. you mean I could go back to my village?"Vai seems deep in thought for a couple moments before shaking her head."No, they aren't my family anymore. They lost that privilege. My family is here now."

Ephebe smiles at her. "We're your family no matter what. You can go back there if you want, even if it's just for curiosity. But it's totally up to you."

Ephebe smiles at her. "We're your family no matter what. You can go back there if you want, even if it's just for curiosity. But it's totally up to you."

"I don't know. I don't feel like... like they deserve to know me. they didn't fight for me. They just went along with it. Like they didn't even care..."Vai's voice cracks at the end, and tears begin rolling down her cheeks. She closes her eyes and shakes her head, trying to stop crying.

He will go to put his arm around her, then stop, remembering she didn't like contact so much, but wipes a tear away instead.

"That's all anyone can ask of you. If it helps any, I'll be cheering for you." he says with a smile.
"So what would you like for dinner? I happen to know a very fast person who can get boxed dinners from the cafeteria..."

She smiled through her tears. "Well, maybe some salmon if they have it."

"Salmon it is then." he says with a smile.

"I shall return."
He teleports to the cafeteria, orders two boxes of salmon and rice, and teleports back
"Here you are my dear, salmon and rice...voila!" he says in a mock French accent

She rolled her eyes. "Very funny. This is what happens when I go shopping with Fi. It's always just one more thing," She giggled. "But I got lots of clothes that should be nice and loose around the waistline."

He moves close and places his hand on her stomach

"As long as your comfortable, thats all that matters. I'm glad you had fun."

He notices Vai's champion aura but says nothing and nods. He stays quiet and listens to Ephebe explain Championhood, nodding along at some points, and cocking his head at the new stuff.

"I know, I know. Thank you Ephebe. I love my new family."Vai says, releasing the hug to brush away tears."Sorry, I guess I still cry at the drop of a hat."Vai smiles sadly, and takes a deep breath."You've been quiet Krays... anything the matter?"

She gripped his hand tightly. "They're going to get this thing out of your head," she said, firmly. "They're going to do that and everything is going to be okay."

"Well, you're better at noticing things than I am, so I'll believe that too. Now how about we got into town to float around while we eat?"

"Okay. Michael? I'm glad you told me. I am worried a little, but I know that they'll give it the best they've got when it comes to helping you. And I believe it'll work. Just...thank you. For thinking about my feelings and letting me support you instead of trying to handle it all on your own. It means a lot to me," she said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"And this time dinner is my treat," she said with a bright smile. "Okaa-san gave me my allowance so for the first time in a long time I'm not flat broke."

"How much interest did you get?" Michael asks, winking, as he takes her hand in his. "Actually, I was worried telling you would ruin the day for you. Professor Sunwake convinced me I should tell you anyway."

"You know, we are at the teleportation circle, we could save some time and use it instead of walking Kuros."

"How much interest did you get?" Michael asks, winking, as he takes her hand in his. "Actually, I was worried telling you would ruin the day for you. Professor Sunwake convinced me I should tell you anyway."

"You know, we are at the teleportation circle, we could save some time and use it instead of walking Kuros."

"As usual, Professor Sunwake is pretty smart," she said with a giggle. "And yeah, you're right, using the teleportation circle is a great idea. I'm in favor of things that get us to dinner quicker," she said as Saffire nodded emphatically in agreement. *meep MEEP*

"Hmm...that's a tough choice. I'd hate to prevent Saffire from getting his favorite food, but I should probably start at least trying to adapt to other styles of food. Although that would be a lot easier if they used a little less sugar," she said with an apologetic grin. "Maybe this time we'll take oiur chances with the mermaid."

Ehos finally sits up after the rain has subsided, peace in his heart. It was good to sit and let nature come over you. How long had he and Wyrd been sitting here in silence? An hour? Two? He couldn't remember. He had been lost in the moments. He stands, streches, and looks at his companion.

Tyrrin had finally calmed down as the rain faded away into a light drizzle, and then a complete stop. She sighed. Her fury was spent. Maybe Fei was right, and some evil creatures could be redeemed. That didn't mean she had to trust or interact with them though. And her stomach was complaining. She had left her breakfast plate mostly untouched. She walked slowly back to the school, making her way into the cafeteria, not looking at anyone. She had made a show of herself, stomping out like that. She got a plate of salad - at least the lunch food was acceptable - and sat alone at a table, pointedly staring at her plate while eating.

"Hello, fellow student," the flashy looking girl with several piercings said with a sigh as she sat her tray down next to Tyrrin's. "I am very pleased to meet you," she continued with the same toneless insincerity.

"Look, I don't really care who you are and I'm sure you feel the same about me, but for the next few minutes we're gonna pretend like we get along and that'll get the teachers off of our cases for a while, got it?"Jaiye whispered, threateningly, although she kept a smile plastered on her face for the benefit of Miss Jones who was still watching.

Tyrrin sighed inwardly. She had just wanted to eat in peace. Ah well. Tyrrin glances around, seeing the watchful Miss Jones - an obvious authority figure - she says back in an even tone.: "Hello, my name is Tyrrin."This student was obviously being punished. Tyrrin guessed that she was probably a loner who had done something - perhaps violent - and was now being forced to interact with students in hopes that she made some friends. Tyrrin hoped this guess was correct when she spoke, quietly this time:"You know, even if you... 'get them off your case' for a while, unless you can fake sincerity better than that, you are going to have them 'on your case' again pretty quickly."

It doesn't take long for Michael and Kitty to get to the sea food restaurant and, if the amount of people leaving is any indication, it seemed like it was packed just minutes before they got there. The flirtatious mermaid swims over and smiles warmly.

"Mikey! It's been a while, hasn't it?" She says. "But in the end you just couldn't stay away from me any longer, could you?"

"Can we get a booth? Kitty and I are kind of here to celebrate."

"Of course! It's no problem at all for such a handsome boy. You're lucky that reunion just left though, or you're good looks wouldn't have been much help." As she turns to lead them to a booth, the mermaid gives Kitty a conspiratorial wink. "So, what can I get you three today?"

"Whatevs," Jaiye said with a shrug. "They'll never be off my case completely. They talk a good game, about how we should all get along and all that crap. But I already have plenty of friends and I don't care about this whole need to get along with non-lycans b!%$$&$%. I just have to pretend until Miss Jones loses interest," she said, taking a big bite of her extremely rare steak.

"Well, I don't think Saffire cares as lon as it's raw and of the general fish persuasion...ooh, you have squid," she said, spotting one of her favorite foods on the menu. "I'd like some of that, please." Even knowing the mermaid was flirting as a game she still had a hard time not losing her temper. She really needed to work on that jealousy problem.

Tyrrin was a little taken aback by the girl's language, but something of what she said caught in Tyrrin's mind. Non-lycan? Tyrrin paused for just a moment. She's a lycanthrope?! And there are MORE? Tyrrin siddled away very slightly, but continued the conversation, though her voice carried a tinge of fear."You know, you should be grateful that the school even accepts lycanthropes. Obviously you have a reason to still be here, or you and your packmates would leave. So why are you still here?"Tyrrin had a deep fear in her heart. Lycanthropes and elves often came into conflict in her homeland. She had seen friends and servants torn to shreds before.

Jaiye snorted. "If you were any greener you'd be a plant. Cause of course there's so many, many places we can go without being shot on sight," she said sarcastically. "If we're here it's cause we already got kicked out of a pack. But it's okay. We made our own pack....but then there were some problems and now we're supposed to make nice with the other students like it never happened. Whatevs. I'll just go along until Ssrena finds us a better sitch. And what kind of a school do you think you're at by the way? Last time I checked this was the school for all of us powerful rejects who can't fit in any place else." She had finished her steak and was lapping the blood up off the plate.

"I think she's doing it to tease me," Kitty said, blushing a little. "Every time she does it, it makes me want to tear her hair out. I know, I know. I'm working on it, but I find it really difficult not to feel jealous."